Ed Berrigan and I used to put out Log Magazine together in San Francisco. It was a congenial way of bridging our friendly disrespect for one another’s writing and taste in others’ writing. Where I was underinformed and inexperienced, Ed was overread and unimpressed – good fodder for a friendship. We met, as most poets did at that time, at Edward Ainsworth’s apartment across the street from Alamo Square Park. All variety of books and substances were constantly available and Edward was always there and always welcoming and huge-hearted, making it the ideal congregation spot.
We plan to release Log #4, The Lost Issue sometime in the near future. Ed’s books are many, including Counting the Hats and Ducks and Disarming Matter. He has a band called I Feel Tractor and used to be the copy editor at Chemical Week, but I think he’s on the dole now. Rumor has it he’s editing The Collected Poems of Ted Berrigan.
I don’t know one thing about Jonathan Alan other than that he was, or is, Ed’s roommate in New York, and his drawings are great!